Gluten-free shopping tip: always read ingredients. There’s more too this than you might think, especially when you’re starting out. It also depends on your sensitivity to gluten.
This is a most important tip. It is more than a tip; it is a rule. You’ll see what I mean as you read this article.
If you have celiac disease, you must avoid all gluten. Even if you don’t feel symptoms, there can be long-term health problems from consuming even small amounts of gluten.
If you have a gluten allergy or have some other gluten intolerance, you can go more by how you feel. Still, gluten can sneak into your diet when you’re not looking.
Either way, you cannot afford to make assumptions!
One of the problems with prepared foods, is the variation in ingredients. Just because one brand of potato chips (or even one flavor of potato chips) doesn’t have gluten, doesn’t mean to say you’re safe with all potato chips by the same brand. I discovers that the hard way!
Another thing to watch for: some brands might change their formula occasionally. You don’t have to read ingredients each and every time you buy a product, but do spot-check every so often, especially if you notice any change in packaging design, or taste/consistency/appearance of the food product.
I provided an example of potato chips just now. You wouldn’t think there might be gluten in potato chips, would you? But there can be, and that brings up an important point. Maybe you can’t imagine some food containing wheat or gluten, but the manufacturer may have decided to include wheat or some derivative for reasons known only to themselves.
What is your experience with shopping gluten-free and reading ingredients? Please leave a comment.